The new vertical display of the Stories feed is already mentioned in the latest version of Instagram, but it is not being actively tested yet. App developer Alessandro Paluzzi discovered a button in Instagram’s code that allows users to change the view of their Stories overview. “Swipe up and down to browse Stories,” reads the feature.
Instagram confirms opposite TechCrunch that the function is indeed being built. “It is an early prototype that is currently not yet being tested on Instagram,” said a spokesman. It is not yet certain that the function will come, although it seems likely.
TikTok is growing fast
TikTok has had great success with its vertical video design. In the Netherlands, TikTok was first last year used more than Facebook among young people. Instagram already came up with TikTok copy before Reels, which has recently gained a more prominent place in the app.
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Instagram head Adam Mosseri recently said The Verge that Instagram has ‘bet on a lot of horses’ in 2020, which should be completed in 2021 by ‘simplifying the experience’. Using vertical scrolling in Stories would be a simplification: the old-fashioned Instagram feed has always been vertical scrolling, just like Reels and Instagram’s Explore overview.
Stories’ horizontal interface was copied by Instagram from Snapchat years ago. Snapchat is also already testing a vertical interface, with its Spotlight function.
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